{"id":607,"date":"2016-06-02T19:09:42","date_gmt":"2016-06-02T19:09:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/?p=607"},"modified":"2026-02-09T14:57:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T19:57:46","slug":"russian-rocket-debris-will-not-fall-in-no-mans-land","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/press-releases\/russian-rocket-debris-will-not-fall-in-no-mans-land\/","title":{"rendered":"Russian Rocket debris will not fall in no-man\u2019s land"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\r\n\r\nJune 2, 2016 \u2013 The rocket scheduled to drop into Canada\u2019s Arctic waters this weekend is a concern for Inuit. \u201cThere are questions regarding the environmental impact of the fuel hydrazine in Arctic waters and the metaldebris field could pose a danger to Arctic wildlife and Inuit\u201d, stated Okalik Eegeesiak, Chair of the InuitCircumpolar Council and International Commissioner of the Pikialasorsuaq Commission.\r\n\r\nThe North Water polynya, or Pikialasorsuaq is an area of open water surrounded by sea ice. It lies north of theArctic Circle in northern Baffin Bay between Greenland and Canada\u2019s Ellesmere Island near Smith Sound andNares Strait. The Pikialasorsuaq is a biologically and culturally unique region and is a breeding ground and migration area for animals such as narwhal, beluga, walrus, bowhead whales and migratory birds. \u201cThis rocketwill not be falling into no-man\u2019s land. This is a vital body of water that is integral to the food supply of Inuitcommunities in Greenland and Canada\u201d Eegeesiak said. \u201cInuit live here, Inuit use the animals in these watersto feed our families, this is our home\u201d.\r\n\r\nThe Pikialasorsuaq Commission was established in January 2016 to consider the unique nature of the region and listen to the Inuit who use, depend on and occupy it about their vision for the future of Pikialasorsuaq. The Commission is led by three Commissioners, ICC Chair, Okalik Eegeesiak (International Commissioner); former Nunavut Premier, Eva Aariak (Canadian Commissioner); and, former Greenland Premier, Kuupik Kleist (Greenland Commissioner).\r\n\r\nThe Commission is presently conducting community hearings on both sides of the North Water polynya or (Pikialasorsuaq) regarding community concerns and aspirations for this critical ecosystem. \"Everywhere we go, we hear that communities want to be involved in maritime management decisions in this region\", noted Eegeesiak.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe North Water is an area vulnerable to change whether it is climate related, tourism or industrial activitiesand to toxic waste and metal debris falling from the sky\u201d, commented Eva Aariak. \u201cYou would not be allowed todump this material from a ship or from the land so the same thing should apply from space\u201d.\r\n\r\nInuit who use and occupy this region have expressed a desire to explore locally-driven management options in advance of increased shipping, tourism, fishing, and non-renewable resource exploration\/development. \u201cThe Arctic should not be seen as a global dumping ground for anyone\u2019s waste\u201d, stated Kuupik Kleist.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\"page1image3481654320\"\r\n
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\r\n\r\nCommissioners:\r\n\r\nOkalik Eegeesiak\r\n\r\nchair@inuitcircumpolar.com\r\n\r\n613-563-2642\r\n\r\nFor more information:\r\n\r\nCarole Simon\r\nICC Canadacsimon@inuitcircumpolar.com613-563-2642\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
\r\n\r\nKuupik Kleist\r\n\r\nkvk@ggnuuk.gl\r\n\r\n+299 54 78 58\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
\r\n\r\nEva Aariak\r\n\r\neva.aariak@gmail.com\r\n\r\n867-222-8355\r\n\r\nAlfred Jakobsen Oceans Northaerj58@gmail.com\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\"page1image3462679184\"\"page1image3462679568\"\"page1image3462679824\"\"page1image3462680080\"\"page1image3462681376\"\"page1image3462681824\"\r\n\r\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26,10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-607","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-26","category-press-releases"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/607","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=607"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/607\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":987515370,"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/607\/revisions\/987515370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=607"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=607"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inuitcircumpolar.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=607"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}